I posted a story about a fellow blogger named Heather a few weeks ago. Heather has a brain tumor and is scheduled for surgery Thursday, May 3rd at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.
God works in mysterious ways! Her surgery is scheduled on the National Day of Prayer. I think she has more than enough blogging buddies to represent each state!
Please remember to pray for Heather, her family, the doctors as well as our nation this Thursday.
I have been tagged by Maria over at Wordsmith Me!
Often times, we use words without thinking about their impact. Choosing the right word means understanding who our audience is. We must be careful not to misuse our thesaurus to simply find a different, overstated, or trendy word. Mark Twain said it best:
“The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.”
If we dare to believe that the pen is truly mightier than the sword, we can’t forget that words are powerful tools in the wordsmith’s toolbox
Here is the Challenge: Pick two or three common words that through overuse have lost their power or that fail to convey meaning precisely. Then choose better alternatives and place them in sample sentences.
My word choices are:
1. numerous (instead of ‘lots’) Actually, there are numerous words that could be used instead of the word ‘lots’. (The word ‘lots’ is exhausted and needs a vacation.)
2. peculiar (instead of ‘weird’ or ‘funny’) The clerk had a peculiar method of stocking the shelves.
3. consider (instead of ‘think’) “Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?” (Acts 26:8 TNIV)
This challenge made me stop and consider the words I have chosen to express my thoughts in the past and what words I will be choosing in the future!
Thank you Maria! I am off to search for better words!
I am tagging Ellen, Scotti and Cynthia for this challenge! Ladies, if you do not want to make this an actual post on your site, feel free to just leave your answers as a comment on my post. Good luck!
My wonderful husband apparently has a twin brother or so say they say. I have been asked by so many people “Hey, don’t you think Steve looks like Luis Gonzalez.” or “Is your husband related to Luis Gonzalez of the Dodgers?” And my personal favorite, “Is Steve moonlighting as Gonzo of the Dodgers?
So, to set the record straight – Here are some pictures of the two of them – you be the judge!
FYI -
No, they are not related.
Steve bats and throws left handed. Luis bats left handed and throws right handed.
Steve is older than Luis by 6 years.
What they do have in common- they both love baseball!
Oh and by the way, my husband is much better looking!
Planning a trip to Amsterdam? Check this out – Noah’s Ark
Huibers said he hopes the project will renew interest in Christianity in the Netherlands, where churchgoing has fallen dramatically in the past 50 years.
I have a song that Jesus gave me,
It was sent from heaven above;
There never was a sweeter melody,
‘Tis a melody of love.
Chorus
In my heart there rings a melody,
There rings a melody with heaven’s harmony;
In my heart there rings a melody;
There rings a melody of love!
Chorus
I love the Christ who died on Calv’ry,
For He washed my sins away;
He put within my heart a melody,
And I know it’s there to stay.
Chorus
‘Twill be my endless theme in glory,
With the angels I will sing;
‘Twill be a song with glorious harmony,
When the courts of heaven ring.
Chorus
The author and composer of this hymn, Elton Roth, was a well-known musician of his day. It was while assisting with evangelistic meetings in Texas on a hot summer day in 1923 that the words and music for this hymn suddenly came to him. Mr. Roth recalled, “That evening I introduced the song by having more than 200 boys and girls sing it at the open air meeting, after which the audience joined in the singing. I was thrilled as it seemed my whole being was transformed into song.”
Amazing Grace – 366 Inspiring Hymnal Stories by Kenneth W. Osbeck
Sunday Morning Post Script!
In my comments, Ellen’s “Dear” just asked, “what prompted you to sing that song?”
I should have included this in my post! Duh!
Answer: I was reading a quote I had jotted down and knew I wanted to post a hymn for Sunday. Here’s the quote:
I never knew how to worship until I knew how to love
Henry Ward Beecher
“Melody of love” popped in my head when I read that quote and I started singing the chorus. I looked up the rest of the words to the hymn and look how fitting the words are when you read the quote! Go figure!
